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No. 17 Cal Ready for Homestand with No. 3 UCLA, No. 9 USC.

This Week in Cal Women's SoccerThe No. 17 California women's soccer team (8-3-1, 2-0-0 in the Pac-10 Conference) returns to the friendly confines of Edwards Stadium to go toe-to-toe with the L.A. schools. The Bears will open with No. 3 UCLA (11-1-1, 2-0-0 Pac-10) on Friday, Oct. 16, at 3:30 p.m. before hosting No. 9 USC (10-3-0, 2-0-0 Pac-10) for a 1 p.m. match on Sunday, Oct. 18. Last season, UCLA advanced to the final of the Women's College Cup while USC lost in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

Last Time OutLast week, Cal opened Pac-10 play with a 2-1 win over then-No. 25 Oregon and a 2-0 victory against Oregon State. Against Oregon, junior forward Alex Morgan scored a goal 1:28 into the game, the earliest for the Bears this season. The Ducks tied the score with a goal 2:46 into the second half, but redshirt junior forward Lisa Kevorkian scored her third game-winning goal of the season just 21 seconds later. In the match against Oregon State, sophomore midfielder Katrin Omarsdottir scored the game-winning goal in the 61st minute. The Bears later received another goal from Alex Morgan with 11:07 left in the game.

On the Pitch With Neil McGuire'The games this weekend provide us with the stiffest of tests. Both UCLA and USC are excellent teams and we look forward to the challenge. We have had a good week of practice, are getting healthier and are looking forward the competition.'

Alex Morgan Named a CS360's Primetime Performer of the WeekJunior forward Alex Morgan was recognized by College Soccer 360 as a Primetime Performer of the Week after her performance last weekend in Oregon. Against the Ducks, Morgan scored just 1:28 minutes into the match by beating the keeper from 20 yards out on a free kick. Morgan also contributed on the game-winning goal - coming in with the assist for Lisa Kevorkian. Morgan distanced the Bears against the Beavers, 2-0, when the Diamond Bar, Calif., native added her 10th goal of the season with 11:07 to play in the game off a dish from redshirt junior Lisa Kevorkian. Morgan went one-v-one with the keeper to beat her for the score. Morgan has 10 goals through 12 games of play, which is a new personal career record after scoring nine goals last year and eight goals during her freshman campaign. Averaging .833 goals per game, Morgan is on pace to score roughly six more goals before the season's close.

Get In-Game Updates With TwitterYou can get the latest news and insider information by following Cal women's soccer on Twitter! Twitter is a free social networking and micro-bloggging service that enables its users to send and read each others' updates that are only 140 characters long. Followers of @CalWomensSoccer can see in-game scoring updates, pictures, links to stories on CalBears.com and more! To become a follower, click here or point your browser to www.twitter.com/calwomenssocer.

Golden Bear Potpourri Morgan's goal in the second minute was the earliest goal scored in any game this season. The previous earliest goal occurred at 2:22 against SMU on Sept. 13 by Katrin Omarsdottir. Redshirt senior Torrey Delaplane saw her first playing time (14 minutes vs. Oregon, nine against OSU) after rejoining the team last week.  The Bears snapped a three-game winless streak with the 2-1 victory over Oregon On Oct. 9 in Eugene.

California and Its Opponents in the National RankingsThe Bears rose slightly and remain in the top-25 in all four polls for the sixth consecutive week. The biggest move was Cal moving from No. 24 in Top Drawer Soccer to No. 19. The Bears also jump from No. 22 to 18th according to Soccer Times and from No. 19 to No. 17 in Soccer America for Cal's highest ranking. The Bears stayed at No. 21 in the NSCAA poll. UCLA - which is ranked third (NSCAA) and fourth (Soccer Times, Soccer America, Top Drawer) - moved just one spot, from fifth to fourth according to Top Drawer.

Cal and Its Opponents in the National Rankings

NSCAA

Soccer Times

Soccer America

Top Drawer Scocer

Final 2008

NR

NR

N/A

N/A

Preseason

NR

25

19

N/A

Aug. 18

NR

23

19

42

Aug. 25

RV

16

16

21

Sept. 1

RV

16

14

25

Sept. 8

16

11

9

13

Sept. 15

9

7

7

10

Sept. 22

8

7

7

9

Sept. 29

14

14

10

13

Oct. 6

21

22

19

24

Oct. 13

21

18

17

19

UCLA - Oct. 13

3 (3)

4 (4)

4 (4)

4 (5)

USC - Oct. 13

15 (23)

10 (19)

9 (14)

6 (6)

Beating the BruinsUCLA has won 11 games in a row, after losing its first game of the season against then-No.1 ranked North Carolina and tying San Diego. The Bruins opened Pac-10 play last weekend with a 2-0 win over Arizona and a 3-2 double-overtime victory against then-No. 20 Arizona State. With last weekends' wins, UCLA has now won 21 straight games against Pac-10 opponents, a streak that dates back to 2006. The Bruins are outscoring their opponents, 37-13, in their first 13 contests. Sophomore forward Sydney Leroux leads the squad with 11 goals and 24 points, while also adding two assists. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Chante' Sandiford has only allowed six goals in twelve games, and also has 31 saves and five shutouts on the year.

Felling TroyAfter losing its first two games of the season, No. 9 ranked USC has since won 10 of its last 11 games and is currently riding a nine-game winning streak. Eight of the team's 10 wins this season have been shutouts. Last week, USC began Pac-10 play with a 1-0 victory over then-No. 20 Arizona State and a 2-0 win against Arizona. Junior midfielder Alyssa Davila leads the Trojans in goals (six), assists (four), and total points (16), despite only starting one of the first 13 games. Senior goalkeeper Kristin Olsen has started all but one of the 13 games on the season and has only allowed eight goals in 1,023 minutes for a goals-against average of 0.70, while also adding 48 saves and six shutouts.

Next Week in Cal Women's SoccerThe Bears take to the friendly skies for a trip to Washington for the third weekend of Pac-10 play. Cal is set to play Washington, which is No. 14 according to Top Drawer Soccer and receiving votes in two polls, Friday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. before traveling East to Pullman for a match against No. 24 Washington State on Sunday, Oct. 25 and 11 a.m.